Grand Funk Railroad, Mashmakhan/Tokyo, Japan 1971

“Arashi no Korakuen” is a concert that left a huge legend in the history of Japanese Western music. This is a reprint of a miraculous live album where you can experience the whole story on-site. [The first complete record testifying to the legend] Of course, this work was recorded on “July 17, 1971: Korakuen Stadium.” This is GRAND FUNK RAILROAD’s first and only performance in Japan, which came before PINK FLOYD and LED ZEPPELIN. This show is nothing short of legendary. Not only was it simply the arrival of new music, “new rock,” but it was also Japan’s first stadium (and probably Japan’s first outdoor) concert. It was an unprecedented experience for both the audience and the staff, and unfortunately, it was raining heavily. In this day and age, it is common for baseball games to be canceled due to rain, so questions such as “Will it really be held?” and “How should I watch it?” are unknown, even beyond “What kind of music?”. Despite such chaos and a series of troubles, GRAND FUNK RAILROAD not only completed the show, but also put on a tremendous performance that is rarely seen anywhere in the world… It was truly a miracle and a legend. This work is the first to convey the entire story of “Storm Korakuen” as “real sounds”. This is an original cassette that first appeared in 2011. After all, it is the best legend in Japan, so recordings existed even before that. However, it is only a fragment. Even if they were previously released by combining them, it was up to the fourth song “Heartbreaker” (less than 30 minutes). However, this master also includes approximately 34 minutes of “Afterwards”. Although the tape ran out when the last “Inside Looking Out” was played for 13 minutes and 40 seconds, this second half was a first-of-its-kind feat in history, and all the songs of the day were almost completely recorded. Moreover, “all songs of the day” are not only GRAND FUNK RAILROAD. The stage performance of MASHMAKHAN, who came to Japan as the opening act, was even recorded, and it even included narration by Mr. Isoi Itoi, who was in charge of the event, and his manager Terry Knight. (As expected, there is no Japanese group that has performed publicly.) The whole story of the legend was recorded in its entirety. [Ultra-realistic undercard MASHMAKHAN and legendary MC] In fact, the undercard MASHMAKHAN was spectacular. I am playing two songs, “Children Of The Sun” and “Gladwin”, but not only the performance is only an acoustic ensemble, but the surrounding mood is also beautifully captured. This is amazing. “It’s a sight to behold when it rains!” “Isn’t everyone going to get naked already?” “I’m going to take off my clothes and get naked!” “Oh, it’s raining!!” “I got electrocuted! Don’t die!” can be clearly heard along with the beautiful performance (by the way, Les Harvey and Keith Relf were electrocuted much later). Particularly intense is when “Gladwin” is played for about 5 minutes. Although there is no element of excitement in the quiet improvisation, a huge cheer erupts. In fact, one of the legends of this day is that “the GRAND FUNK RAILROAD banner (signboard) was blown away by a gust of wind,” and it happened at this moment (it’s written that way on the cassette). . The excitement of the audience getting excited about the trouble is super realistic in a different dimension from the heated performance. Legend has it that it took almost an hour to change the set after MASHMAKHAN. As expected, the tape was stopped there, but recording resumed when Mr. Itoi and Terry Knight appeared. Immediately after restarting, the scene conveys a murderous atmosphere with the lines “Start quickly, you idiot!” and “Sit down! Sit down!”, but the mood suddenly changes with Terry’s “Minasan, Konbanwa”, and the scene becomes peaceful with “Good evening!”. !” is the funny answer. Afterwards, Terry sang, “Grand Funk Railroad is here now!” to great cheers, and added, “The stage got wet from the rain. I’m sorry I’m late. But GFR will be playing tonight. We’re going to play for you! (Because of rain, the stage is very wet. We are sorry for the delay…Grand Funk Railroad will play for you tonight!). This greeting part and the opening SE “Speaking Zarathustra” are different masters from the main story (approximately 4 minutes 40 seconds), but this is also a noiseless superb master that is different from the noise-filled ones that were distributed among traders. . [The truth behind the famous performance that was even called a “career best”] And finally, the main character appears! This moment is amazing!! The intro of “Are You Ready” roars in sync with Mr. Itoi’s “Thank you for your patience, let me introduce you. Ladies & Gentlemen, GRAND FUNK RAILROAD!!” However, the sound pressure and loud cheers were so powerful! The frustration of having to wait for nearly an hour in the rain is exploding, but the performance that completely overturns it is like a nuclear explosion. Partly because the opening act was the beautiful acoustic MASHMAKHAN, the dynamism of their attacking power was incredible. Between songs, you can still hear the conversation clearly, so you can tell it’s the same recording, but the performance sounds are completely different. To be honest, it is a sound that requires some getting used to by the audience, but this energy and dynamism is also important evidence. Of course, if you are used to guest records, you can feel the subtleties of the performance with the thick core. This is also amazing. At the time, there was even suspicion that he was lip-syncing due to his impenetrable performance, but this was perhaps a sign of the still-infant Japanese Western music scene. Live music with plenty of improvisation no matter where you listen. It is also of the highest quality. When this recording first appeared, a review in a specialized magazine said, “The image of “GFR = Kuchipaku” that was spread by the media in the Showa era is foolishly still being talked about only in Japan, even in the 21st century.” However, now that the original sound source has appeared, these old people probably want to run away barefoot,” which is truly a statement. Rather, the phrase “Zeppelin also butt” comes more comfortably, and the great performance that is completely different from, but surpasses, the famous album “LIVE ALBUM” comes out with a furious force. Not only did he leave many anecdotes in the Japanese Western music scene, but he was also such a great performer that Mark Furner himself later named him one of the best of his career. This is a genuine cultural heritage album that allows you to experience the whole story in ultra-realistic sound. The legends passed down by word of mouth were both true and false. Live at Korakuen Stadium, Tokyo, Japan 17th July 1971 PERFECT SOUND(from Original Masters)(79:55) Mashmakhan 1. Children Of The Sun 2. Gladwin Grand Funk Railroad 3. Goro Itoi & Terry Knight Stage Announcements 4. Also Sprach Zarathustra / Soundcheck 5. Goro Itoi Introduction 6. Are You Ready 7. Paranoid 8. In Need 9. Heartbreaker 10. Mark Says Alright 11. T.N.U.C. 12. Inside Looking Out Mark Farner – Guitar, Vocal Don Brewer – Drums, Vocal Mel Schacher – Bass